


Survive the night

by Dylan_Ols02



Category: Rapunzel's Tangled Adventure (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Kidnapping, Poisoning
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-05
Updated: 2020-09-12
Packaged: 2021-03-06 14:41:05
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 8,428
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26300587
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Dylan_Ols02/pseuds/Dylan_Ols02
Summary: Varian, Kiera and Catalina wake up one night in a cabin in the middle of a forest without memories of how they got there.Without knowing, the three of them have been dragged into a dangerous game that they may be unable to leave.
Relationships: Angry | Keira & Rapunzel & Red | Catalina & Varian (Disney), Angry | Keira & Rapunzel & Red | Catalina (Disney), Angry | Keira & Rapunzel (Disney), Angry | Keira & Red | Catalina & Lance Strongbow, Angry | Keira & Red | Catalina (Disney), Angry | Keira & Varian (Disney), Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider & Varian, Eugene Fitzherbert | Flynn Rider/Rapunzel, Quirin & Varian (Disney), Rapunzel & Varian (Disney), Red | Catalina/Varian (Disney)
Comments: 15
Kudos: 49





	1. Part 1 (12 hours until dawn)

**Author's Note:**

> I've finally decided to create my own fanfic. I always loved the friendship between Varian, Kiera and Catalina, but in the series we hardly saw any of that, so I decided to create it myself. I'll publish a new chapter every two or three days, depending on how long I have to write.  
> One detail before we begin: Varian's last name is the non-canonic, since it's not confirmed by the creator that his full name is Varian Ruddiger, yet I decided to wear it because I needed a last name for him. I hope you like it.

Eugine, sitting on the captain's desk, signed the last of the many legal documents that the king and Rapunzel had been filling all day. He looked at his pocket watch, dialed 18:07, "A good hour" thought Eugine, it wasn't too late to eat before dinner.

Eugine went to the kitchen of the castle, where he took some chocolate brownies, and then he went to Rapunzel's room. She had also been busy all day, Nigel had insisted on both of them very much that the next meeting with the King of Neserdnia should come out perfect, although they didn't understand because he was so interested, after all, it was just a meeting with the king of another kingdom, nothing they hadn't done before. 

When Eugine entered Rapunzel's room, he saw that she was sitting in her bed, reading a book of fairy tale stories. He could tell she was very tired.

"Hey sunshine, I brought you something to eat, I thought after this day you might be hungry."

Rapunzel smiled, leaving the book on the table next to her bed and waking up. Before she took the brownie dish, she kissed Eugine. He was right, it had been a tiring day, Nigel had been after her all day, reminding her of the afternoon meeting with the King of Neserdnia, the brochures she had to fill out among many other things.

Rapunzel thought it was very strange, Nigel was very handed to his work, but he never behaved so insistently. Still, Rapunzel and Eugine appreciated the day was already running out, in a few hours they'd have a romantic dinner for them two, then they'd go around the castle gardens and finally go to sleep.

Eugine sat on the edge of the bed and started talking about how the day had gone, how exhausting it had been among other things, but suddenly the door of Rapunzel's room opened up.Lance entered to the room just before he said.

"Eugine, Rapunzel, sorry to barge in here so suddenly but have you seen the girls?"

Both looked very strange before Eugine answered.

"I saw Kiera this morning but we've been busy all day, we've barely had time to meet each other."

"No way, I thought they'd be here."

Eugine stood next to his friend before he asked.

"Lance, what happened?"

Rapunzel proposed to take Lance to one of the castle halls so he could speak more calmly. As soon as they arrived, Lance sat on one of the couches, still very nervous, and started telling them what had happened. 

"This morning, the girls accompanied me to shopping before I went to my job at Snuggly Duckling, then they told me they were preparing a surprise for my birthday and they needed the castle kitchen for that. I told them nothing happened because they were here the day as long as they came home at 5:00 in the afternoon, before it went dark, but when I came home, they just weren't, I asked around town in case anyone had seen them, but they all said no."

Eugine and Rapunzel heard Lance's story, very worried. Rapunzel decided to stay optimistic.

"Don't worry, Lance, I'm sure the girls have just been distracted at Monty's candy shop or taking a walk around town, we'll find them soon." 

When Rapunzel finished talking, the three of them heard someone knocking at the door, very upset. Without waiting for an answer, the door opened and a man appreciated the other side. Eugine was the first to speak. 

"Quirin, what's going on? Are you okay?"

"Captain, princess, I'm so sorry to bother you, but have you seen my son?"

Rapunzel was the one who answered.

"Varian has gone home for a couple of hours now, come to say goodbye before he left."

"I've been waiting for him but he haven't reached Old Corona, I came here but he's not in the lab, not in the kitchen, not in the city. No one's seen him since this morning."

Eugine started to get overwhelmed, Kiera and Catalina had already found it strange, but now Varian was missing, too?

"But what's going on here?"

* * *

The first thing Varian noticed when he woke up, besides the cold and headache, was that he wasn't alone, he distinguished Kiera and Catalina, also lying on the wooden floor, waking up at that time.

"Girls, are you all right?"

Kiera, who had been the first of the 3 to wake up, was the one who answered.

"Yes. Just. Where are we?"

"Looks like a cabin."

This time, it was Catalina who answered.

"But how did we get here?"

Kiera touched her pants pockets and coat as she stood up, just to find out she was no longer wearing her little dagger (that she use to defend herself) or her pocket watch. She assumed they were stolen

Varian started looking around, the room they were in was just lit up by a little candle on a wooden table. 

There was no other furniture, but under the table Varian distinguished what appeared to be his backpack. When he went to get it, he realized it was almost empty, there were only three bottles of what appeared to be water and a few test tubes full of a substance that lit up as soon as it was shaken.

Catalina paved her neck with her hands until she noticed something strange.

"Guys, I think I got something on my neck."

Kiera was the one who approached her sister to check what was happening to her. She was right, she had a little mark of what appeared to be a needle. Kiera started touching the same area until she also noticed the mark.

"I think I have the same thing."

"Yeah, me too, but what can it be?"

When Varian finished talking, a distorted voice started to hear that scared the three children.

"Good evening dear players, sisters Schnitz and young Ruddiger, I welcome you to The Hunt, I am your host. Most likely you have a lot of questions, but we don't have time for that, so I'll get to the point. You've entered the game of" The Hunt" so I'm going to explain the rules. The needle marks you have on your neck, are from a slow acting poison that runs right now through your veins, the only way to get the antidote is by completing the 4 tests you will find in the forest, there is a test designed for each of you and one for the 3 together, if you find them and get over them all before dawn, you'll have the antidote and you'll be able to go home. If you fail, try to cheat or escape, my minions will find you and kill you. Good luck at 3, let The Hunt begin."


	2. Part 2 (10 hours until dawn)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The kids metalized himselfs to move on while in Corona people start to worry.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't going to publish this chapter until tomorrow, but as I had already written it in the end I decided to publish it today. I've already started writing the next chapter, so you'll probably have it in a day or two.  
> Although this part starts almost from where the last one stayed, the fanfic won't be 12 chapters, I'll jump for several hours so I don't have to include pointless scenes that don't bring anything.  
> In the previous part, I forgot to mention that the fanfic is not originally written in English, so if there's any spelling error it's for the Google translator.  
> I hope you like it.

Rapunzel walked down the halls of the castle, very upset, she had suggested trying to follow the children's last steps. In the case of Keira and Catalina, Faith, one of the maids, told them he'd seen them hours before in the kitchen, making a cake for their father's birthday.

In Varian's case, it was harder to track him down since he used to lock himself in the lab and hardly ever went out until it got dark and returned home in Old Corona. Anyway, one of the guard's soldiers said he'd seen him leave the castle shortly before 5:00 p.m.

Lance and Quirin had stayed in the castle room, both very worried. They both knew very well that none of their children would have been so late when they came home, they were clear that something bad should have happened to them.

Despite his concern, Lance was trying to stay optimist.

"They can't have gone far, not so long ago they saw them, they have to be near Corona."

"I hope so, I don't know if I could bear to lose my son again."

Lance understood what he meant, Quirin had always been away from Varian's life, since his wife had died almost 10 years ago (or at least that was what Varian had told him). Then he lost almost 2 years of his life when Varian was put in prison for his actions.

The Old Corona leader smiled before he spoke again.

"I still remember it perfectly. The day Varian was born, the doctors gave me a tiny person wrapped in many blankets, and when he looked at me with those huge blue eyes, I was invaded by the strangest feeling I had ever felt. It was love. It was that deep and sudden love that feels for a son. That day, Ulla and I knew perfectly well that our life had changed for the best, forever."

Frederick was listening to the conversation between the two parents on the other side of the door. It could not be said that he had the best opinions about boys, after all, the two girls had had their kingdom terrified of the multiple robberies and even dared to steal the princess's crown, and that boy had kidnapped his beloved wife, attacked his daughter and almost destroyed a village. But at that point, none of it mattered, there was only one thing that was very clear.

"Captain Fitherbert?"

Eugene stood right next to the king.

"Yes, Your Majesty?"

"I want you to do everything possible to bring those 3 children back home, use whatever resources you need, you can ask me anything you need, if you need none member of the royal guard will rest until you find the children. Do what you have to do to bring those kids back to their parents."

Eugene was surprised at the King's decision, he was convinced that he would not want to get involved in the rescue of children, after all, the king had no good opinions about any of the three kids. Still, Eugene was clear that he would have acted the same way even if he had not had the King's approval.

He and Rapunzel had acted very quickly, as soon as they were sure Varian, Keira and Catalina had disappeared, they had started to give the news to everyone who could in the hope that someone would have some information. Rapunzel had warned her parents and other staff in the castle, Eugene, instead had notified the members of the royal guard and some of the neighbours near the castle, including Xavier the blacksmith and Feldspar, the shoemaker. Although the voice was spread quickly, they didn't hear from the children. Or at least not right away

* * *

Varian, Keira and Catalina stopped under a huge tree after they'd been running for longer than they could remember.

After hearing that voice, telling them about the "rules" of the game, they'd been so scared that they'd run out of the cabin like a soul that the devil takes, not before taking Varian's backpack and the little candle on the table, which was already starting to go out. The three of them sat quietly, on the ground of the woods, breathing hard, until Keira decided to talk.

"What the hell is going on here?"

Varian and Catalina looked at her. Afraid on her face, her sister responded.

"How do you expect us to know?"

"Girls, let's try to stay calm"

"V, how do you expect us to do that?"

"I don't know, but fighting won't do any good, the only thing we know for sure right now is that we're stuck in this woods and if we don't stick together, maybe we can't get out of here alive."

Keira calmed down a little after hearing her friend's words. He were right, they should stick together in this situation. Varian kept talking.

"Well, let's think a little, what's the last thing you remember before you wake up in that cabin?"

They both got to think, and Catalina responded by looking at her sister.

"I think I remember we'd been in the kitchen at the castle making a cake for dad's surprise party. Then we went home and the next thing I remember is waking up here."

"Yes, I remember the same thing, what about you V?"

"I just remember I was coming back to Old Corona the usual way but suddenly everything went black and I woke up in the cabin with you."

Keira spoke again.

"What's clear is that we've been drugged, if not so I don't understand how they would have gotten us to don't remember anything of what happened."

Catalina nodded and then she answered.

"I think we should focus on what we have to do now, remember what the host said?"

"Yes, he said we had until dawn to find the antidote against poison, he also said we had to complete his 4 tests and if we were cheating or trying to escape, they'd kill us."

Varian took the candle (almost completely consumed) and stood.

"In that case, girls, we already know what we have to do, let's find the four tests, find the antidote and go home."

The sisters looked at him very strange, although only Keira dared to say.

"V, how can you be so optimist at a time like this?"

"It's something I learned from Rapunzel, you have to look for the bright side of things."

"Yes, but I don't understand where the bright side is in this situation"

"You just have to think it through. The host said this was a game, and games can be won"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I want to clarify one detail. In Spanish, the term "Correr como alma que lleva el diablo“ (Running like a soul that the devil takes) is often used, but I don't know whether in the other languages there is also. But if not, the expression means basically running very fast and very nervous.  
> I hope you liked this chapter. It's the last one I had written in advance, in a couple of days you'll have chapter 3.


	3. Part 3 (8 hours until dawn)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian faces his first challenge while in Corona, the people desperately seek clues of the disappearance of the 3 children.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm as surprised as you, last night I could finish this chapter and start the next one. Unfortunately, I don't think I can publish Chapter 4 for a day or two. Still, I hope you enjoy this chapter.

"Princess, you shouldn't get so involved in this matter, I'm sure the royal guard members will take care of that, plus those three kids are not your family."

Rapunzel turned to Nigel suddenly and without thinking twice she scream at him so loud that everyone in the castle hall at that time turned scared.

"HOW DO YOU TRY TO TELL ME THAT? YOU THINK YOU CAN PICK WHAT I'M GONNA DO? FOR YOUR INFORMATION I AM THE PRINCESS AND IF I AM DEEMED I AM GOING TO WORK ON THE SEARCH FOR MY 3 LITTLE SIBLINGS, YOU ACCEPT IT AND THAT'S ALL. NOW TO DO WHAT THINGS BUT I DON'T WANT TO SEE YOU HERE"

Nigel ran away from the great salon very scared, he'd never seen Rapunzel react that way, just like none of the servants who were there at the time.

Eugene entered the room, also very surprised, since he had heard his girlfriend's screaming from the door.

As soon as she saw him arrive, Rapunzel ran to him and asked if there were any developments about the disappearance of the kids.

"I'm so sorry, Sunshine, I've talked to almost all the neighbors who could have seen the kids but nobody knows anything."

Rapunzel couldn't help but cry on Eugene's shoulder. She felt guilty about what had happened.

"Eugene, if I'd accompanied the girls home at night..."

"No, don't blame yourself for what happened. It's my fault."

Rapunzel looked up and realized he was crying, too.

"Varian told me he needed someone strong to help him with one of his experiments. I told him I'd help him, but today I've been so busy that I haven't had time to do almost anything."

"Yeah, I've been through the same thing, I couldn't go to help with the cake the girls. My royal duties have kept me busy all day."

At that time Stan the guard came through the door and went quickly to where Rapunzel and Eugene were.

"Captain, I'm sorry to bother but it's very important."

"Don't worry Stan, tell me, what's going on?"

"I think we may have useful information about the disappearance of children."

* * *  
Keira was ahead, lighting the road with the help of a small bottle that emitted light that Varian had given her. He and Catalina stayed behind her, he because he was shaking the cold he had (even though the three were very warm) and she because she was not feeling very well, she had started to get a little dizzy and her head ached, Varian and her sister immediately knew that her unrest was the result of the poison that the host had told them about.

"Varian, what time do you think it is?"

Varian was surprised by that sudden interest of Catalina to know what time it was. As none of the three were wearing any clocks (as they were stolen), Varian looked into the sky before answering the question.

"By the moon position, I'd say it's 10:00 p.m or 11:00 p.m."

"Are you sure?"

The group stopped before Varian answered.

"Almost 100%. They probably brought us into the woods at 6:00 p.m, which is when it gets dark, considering the sun comes up at about 6:00 a.m, the host wanted us to have exactly 12 hours to complete his game. If my calculations don't fail me, now we must have about 8 or 9 hours until dawn."

The sisters were shaking, 8 or 9 hours was not the time they expected to have to find and overcome four different challenges. That's probably why Catalina had started to feel bad. Still, knowing that motivated them to move on.

Just a few minutes after they where been talking, the kids found a wooden cabin under huge trees. It was similar to the cabin where they woke up before, only this one was much bigger.

As soon as they came in, they realized the inside was almost empty. There was a wood table in the center of the room with a note written on a piece of blue paper, three bottles of glass numbered from 1 to 3 with a transparent substance inside it and a small pocket watch. Behind the table there was another door.

All 3 came up to the table and Varian stood right in front of it and read the note out loud.

"Dear players, one of you's TIME is starting to run out, but I can help you with that. Use one of the substances on the table, but be very careful because one will kill but two will cure."

When Varian finished reading the note, he realized two things. That that was his challenge, and that what was in those jars could help Catalina.

When he looked up at the note, he noticed that Catalina was leaning on her sister, with her eyes half-closed. Varian knew he had to act quickly. He read the note again one last time, looking at how the word "Time" was in capital letters. He knew that had to be important.

Keira helped her sister sit on the floor, with her back on the wall and then stood next to Varian.

"V, if the note says that the 2 will cure, then we should give her the substance that has the bottle with number 2."

"No, I don't think it's that easy. Look at how the word "time" is in capital letters, it has to be important. If you look at the pocket watch on the table, you'll see it stopped at 3 o'clock. The handles mark numbers 1 and 3, I think we should mix the substances from the bottles with those numbers and give it to your sister."

"Don't you think it's a little bit overwhelmed? What if it doesn't work? What if whatever you give her kills her?"

"What will kill her is not do anything now"

Without waiting for an answer, Varian poured the substance from the bottle with number 1 in the bottle with number 3, removed it a little bit and approached Catalina, who was almost as bad as before. Keira stood next to her sister, hoping that whatever Varian gave her could help her.

Catalina drank all the fluid from the bottle, then put her head on the wooden wall and shut her eyes while she waited.

After several minutes, Catalina started feeling better, the headache was disappearing and she felt strong again to keep moving through the forest.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know the Corona part has been very short this time, but in this fanfic the parts that matter really are Varian, Keira and Catalina. Still, I think you're gonna like what's coming next. Thank you so much for reading.


	4. Part 4 ( 6 hours until dawn)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eugene and Rapunzel discover a decisive lead that could lead them to find out what happened to the kids. While in the woods, Keira faces her challenge.

Stan was taking Eugene and Rapunzel to the castle area where the guards took people for interrogation. Pete was waiting for them there, and as soon as he saw them arrive, he and Stan explained the situation.

"Captain, princess, just a few minutes ago a man came here personally and said he could provide useful information about the disappearance of Varian Ruddiger and Keira and Catalina Schnitz, although he says he will only talk to the captain of the guard or the princess of Corona, he also asked that his identity should not be revealed to anyone. He's waiting in the interrogation room."

Eugene looked at Rapunzel who nodded almost instantly.

Both of them entered the room. The man they had told you about was actually a young man, about 19 or 20 years old. As soon as he saw them come in, he showed up as Connor Bates and told them he had useful information to give them. 

"Mr. Bates, what can you tell us about the despair of children?"

"Please just call me Connor. And as for the disappearance. The children have fallen prisoners of the CAITH."

Rapunzel and Eugene looked at each other very strange. They didn't know that word. She decided to ask.

"What are the CAITH? I've never heard that name before."

"CAITH is a supposedly secret organization that work with people, sales of servants, smuggling of slaves, forced labour. Among many other horrible things. They always deal with people they've sold."

Eugene couldn't believe what he heard. Sale of servants? Smuggling slaves? People that sell?

"How are you so sure all three children are with the CAITH?"

"Because the CAITH have been planning their kidnapping for weeks, since they were sold. I know because I've been investigating their actions for many years, although I've only managed to get here I couldn't stay calm knowing that two parents could lose their children and I could do something to help them."

Rapunzel spoke suddenly.

"Wait, you mean you know where the kids are?"

"Unfortunately, not, I only know they sold them to the CAITH, but the only person outside the organization who can know what they're gonna do to them is the person who sold them, that person had to meet some members of the CAITH to sign the agreement and receive his money."

"And do you know who is?"

"I don't know who the person is, I've only seen his signature"

"Do you at least think you could describe it?"

Eugene spoke with hope in his voice. If they had a sketch of the firm, they'd have a little hope of knowing who was responsible for the sale of the children and hopefully they'd have a clue to find them.

"I can do something better, Captain, I can show you the exact signature."

After that, Connor put a paper on the table with a signature. Eugene picked it up quickly.

"No way."

He and Rapunzel were shocked when they saw that signature. It was a signature that they both have seen many times before.

The author of that firm was someone they both knew very well.

* * *

"We're running out of light again"

All 3 children had decided to change their positions. Catalina was feeling much better and strong so she was going ahead, lighting the road, while Varian and Keira were behind. It had been almost two hours since they had left the other cabin and they had not yet been able to find the next challenge. This time it was Varian who was starting to feel bad. A headache had long overrun him, although he had decided not to tell anything to don't worry the girls, he felt so weak that he had not been able to keep hiding it.

"Guys, look, it seems like there's another challenge here."

Catalina was right, tied to a tree there was a black paper. Keira knew that the challenge was meant to be for her. She untied the note and read it out loud.

"Dear players, one of you's time is starting to run out, but I can help you with that. If you climb to the top of this tree, you will find what you seek, have luck, but be careful."

The three of them looked up, realizing that that tree was almost 7 meters high.

Keira knew that climbing a tree like that was very dangerous, but she trusted her skills as an expert ex-thief. If at the top of the tree there was something that could help Varian at the time, then she was willing to go up there.

By the time Catalina wanted to realize, her sister had already started climbing the tree. She was doing it very quickly and in less time than they expected she got to the top.

Keira took a lot longer to get down, since she wanted to be careful, although when she was near the floor, a branch of the tree broke down by making the girl fall from where she was. Although her sister and Varian (who was so weak that he had to sit on the floor) quickly approached her, Keira was well, luckily the fall had not been from so high.

Varian drank the substance in the bottle that his friend had dropped him off the top of the tree and, just like it had happened to Catalina a few hours ago, in a few minutes, he was feeling much better.

The three of them knew they couldn't waste time, so Catalina helped Varian get off the ground and then they went on walking this time with Varian in front, holding one of his luminous bottles to light the way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I suppose some of you will suspect who is the author of the firm. I want to know your theories so you can put them in the comments and tomorrow you'll find out who it was. I hope you liked this chapter.


	5. Part 5 ( 3 hours until dawn)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In Corona, Rapunzel and Eugene talk to the person responsible for the disappearance of the children. While Catalina faces her challenge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> We're getting close at the end. Today we will finally find out who was responsible for the disappearance of the kids. Thank you very much for your comments. And the culprit is (drum roll)...

Eugene and Rapunzel were in the royal guard room at the castle next to Lance and Quirin, waiting for the author of the firm to arrive. She still felt guilty for not knowing it earlier.

"How could I have been so blind? He hates children with all his soul."

"Sunshine, how would we know that he would be able to do something like that?"

Pete and Stan showed up at the door, escorting the person Eugene and Rapunzel had requested to see immediately.

"Captain Fitherbert, Princess Rapunzel, the royal advisor Nigel"

"With all the respect, princess, you pulled me out of bed on a schedule I shouldn't be working anymore"

"Stop playing Nigel, we know it was you."

Rapunzel spoke with a lot of anger in her voice, although to surprise everyone, Nigel was surprised.

"Princess, I don't know what you're talking about"

Eugene went ahead to stand in front of him and showed him the role Connor had given them just before he grabbed him with violence by the lapel of his jacket.

"We talked about this, the kids are gone because of you, so you better tell us what you've done to them."

Nigel frowned, and just then he answered him.

"I've only done what I should have done a long time ago"

Eugene threw him blinded by rage.

"You sold the kids?"

"No. I didn't sell three innocent kids as you call them. What I did was sell three dangerous criminals, a traitor and two thieves, Corona is much better without..."

Nigel didn't finish the sentence since before he knew it, Eugene had violently beaten him in the face.

"Captain, that was an assault, you can't do that to me."

Ignoring Nigel's words, Eugene addressed the guards who had at all times kept themselves by the door.

"Stan, Pete, take this scum into the dungeons." 

Nigel talked very nervous while he was placed in handcuffs and took him to a cell.

"I'm not going to say anything, you can't force me, I know my rights."

Although everyone was in trouble to admit it, he was right, it was a right that the prisoners had, the guards couldn't force anyone to talk if he didn't want to.

Rapunzel placed a hand on Eugene's shoulder before she said.

"What are we gonna do now?"

Although at first everyone in the room was quiet, Lance spoke.

"Leave me a moment with him."

Eugene looked at his friend, he wasn't quite sure what he was gonna do, yet he turned to Pete and Stan and nodded them.

The two guards escorted Lance to the cell where Nigel had been put, who was now chained to the wall, Pete opened the cell door and he and Stan left the dungeon area.

"What do you want?" I said I'm not talking to any guards."

"I'm not a member of the royal guard, you remember the two girls, right? I'm their father."

Nigel came up very scared to the wall while Lance started walking slowly towards him.

"Those guards out there are friends of mine and friends of my daughters."

"I swear if you touch me I'll report you"

"I don't care, now tell me..."

From outside that area, screams of pain began to be heard. Everyone in the room was scared, although they decided it was best not to interrupt.

Just a minute later Lance showed up through the door.

"The hunt"

* * *

Keira don't remember she felt as weak as she was at the time. Her head hurt, she was very dizzy and she could barely stand, although luckily they had found the third challenge about just a few seconds. The note with the rules was on a wooden table under a tree next to six metal cups. Catalina had taken care of reading the note, which was written on red paper.

"Dear players, one of you's time is starting to run out, but I can help you with that. You deserve something easy, inside one of the cups you have in front of is what you seek, you only have to choose the right one, but be very careful because one of the chalices will help you, but the others will kill you."

The note didn't say anything else or give any clue what the right chalice might be.

Catalina was starting to get nervous, even though Varian was at her side trying to help her pick the right one, without any clue was an almost impossible task, especially with the pressure on her to know that if they failed, the punishment would be lethal for Keira. That's when Catalina realized one detail, all the cups had a drawing inside. Although Varian seemed to be a simple coincidence, she stared at the drawing in one of the glasses and immediately knew that that was the one containing the substance that would help them.

Keira trusted her sister's decision, so she drank the liquid in the cup she gave her and waited.

Just like it had happened before Varian and Catalina, in a few minutes she felt strong again.

Varian asked Catalina.

"How did you know that was the right chalice?"

"It's been easy."

That's when he showed him the glass already empty. Varian looked and he understood as her friend had been so sure of her decision.

The bottom of the cup was decorated with a drawing of a little golden leaf.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to show on this fanfic how much I hate Nigel and I think I did it in the right way.  
> In case you wonder why Connor didn't want to get involved in the search for the kids is basically because he wants the same thing they want but not at any price so don't be surprised if he doesn't show up again.  
> Thanks for reading.


	6. Part 6 ( 1 hour until dawn)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eugene and Rapunzel discover one last clue that could lead them to the children. Meanwhile, with the time against them, Varian, Keira and Catalina make a difficult decision.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wasn't expecting this, but yesterday while I finished writing this chapter, I managed to finish the remaining ones, so in a couple of days I'll finish this fanfic. Thank you all very much for your comments and your support. I hope you enjoy this chapter.

After leaving the guard room, Rapunzel had taken Lance and Quirin back to one of the chateau halls while Eugene was investigating what "The Hunt" might be. The Old Corona leader couldn't stay calm, not after he'd found out about everything that had happened to his son and his friends.

Rapunzel sat on a couch next to Lance, She have been wanting to ask him about what just happened.

"Lance, what happened to Nigel in that cell?"

Lance sighed and was quiet a few moments before he answered.

"I have appealed to his humanity"

Rapunzel was surprised at that answer. She totally understood what Lance meant.

He had tortured him until he got the information he needed.

"Lance, I didn't think you could do that."

"You have noidea of what a father is capable of doing for his son."

While they where talking, Eugene showed up at the door. That's when he told everyone in the room that he hadn't gotten any information about anything called "The Hunt."

Despite that, Rapunzel was not willing to give up and decided to resort to the last option they had left.

The king Frederick and the queen Arianna were sitting in a huge castle hall, although they didn't admit it, they were worried about what could happen to the children. Suddenly, Rapunzel and Eugene showed up through the door without knocking before. It was Rapunzel who spoke.

"Dad, we're sorry to appear here so suddenly but this is very important. You told us before we could ask you for help in our search. Well, we've discovered many clues but we're stuck."

The King didn't care if the two of them came so suddenly out the door. What he said at the beginning of the night to Eugene was real. He was willing to help whatever it took.

"Tell me you need Rapunzel, if I can help you I will."

"Do you know something called "The Hunt"?"

He was surprised at the question and was disappointed, since he couldn't help them with that.

"I'm so sorry, but I've never heard it before."

"Wait, you talk about That hunt?"

The Queen Arianna, who had been listening to the conversation from the beginning, knew very well what they were talking about.

"Mom, do you know anything about it?"

""The Hunt" is some kind of urban legend. It is said that a secret organization kidnaps several people and then lock them in a forest for one night and pass them through different challenges. While this happens, the organization gets large amounts of money when some rich people bet how long the players will last."

"The kids might be competing in that right now."

The queen shaken in the face of that situation. Rapunzel noticed her mother's nervousness, from what she told her.

"Mom, what's going on?"

"As it is said, no one who has ever participated in that macabre game has lived to tell it."

* * *  
The kids distinguished a small wooden cabin between the highest trees in the forest area where they were. The three of them were relieved, they had finally found the last challenge.

They entered the cabin, one behind the other and realized that that cabin, unlike the previous ones, was very well lit and its inside was different. There was a huge wood table in the middle of the living room, but just when the kids came over to see what was on top, the door behind them was violently closed. Despite all of them's efforts to reopen it, it was impossible.

Varian walked away from the door to observe what was on the table. Like the previous times, he found a note written on white paper. He started reading it out loud so the girls could listen to him.

"Dear players, I give you my sincere congratulations. You have managed to get here safely, but I regret to say that the operation of this last challenge is you have to find out, although I will tell you the rules. 1 or 3, make your choice. And if you choose the second option, bear in mind that one will suffer for three. Good luck"

Varian looked around, that's when he noticed that next to the other door in the room there was a bucket of metal with a mark. 5 liters. The alchemist again looked at the objects on the table while the girls were watching him quietly.

On the table, apart from the note he had already read, there was a wooden box. Once it opened, the gears turned on Varian's head. Inside the box there were 3 sterilized scalpels and 2 syringes with a transparent substance inside it and with a small label on each of them with a name of a medicine. Lidocaine.

"I understand the rules of this challenge."

Although none of the girls said anything, Varian kept talking.

"That bucket of metal is connected directly to the system that keeps the door locked, when the bucket is filled, the door opens."

Keira watched her friend without understanding very well why he was so nervous.

"Is it filled with what?"

Varian looked at the girls, very nervous about the news he had to give, took a few moments to answer, but finally he got the courage to do it.

"Blood, with our blood."

Keira and Catalina were shocked by the answer. All the challenges they had passed had been dangerous but never to that point.

Almost a minute later, Varian went on with his explanation.

"The runway says 1 or 3, make your choice, so it means that a person can sacrifice 5 litres of blood and die, or 3 people can sacrifice 1.70 litres each, and maybe live."

Despite the fear that Catalina felt in her body at the time, she decided to ask.

"And what is that of 1 will suffer for 3?"

Varian stared at her before he answered.

"The two syringes in the box are filled with a medicine, which serves to numb the skin. That means if we chose the second option two of us wouldn't have to suffer, but there's only 2 doses, so one would feel all the pain."

None of the three said anything in the next few minutes, although everyone had the same idea in their mind. They had to make a decision as soon as possible, they had barely had time until dawn, and then the poison that was still running through their veins would kill them, no matter how everyone had taken that substance they had been finding after each of the three individual challenges.

"But that person won't be you"

Varian moved fast to the table where he took a scalpel of those in the box just before Keira stopped him.

"V, what are you doing?"

"Keira, someone has to take the lead, so you have to decide now, which choice do you want?"

The two sisters looked at him very surprised. They didn't take long to understand what Varian meant, he was willing to die for them if they chose the first option and he was also willing to suffer all the pain that was necessary if they chose the second option. They know that they had barely time left, and therefore they had to make a decision at that time, they were not willing to let their best friend die, even though they knew what that meant. Very regrettable they left aside any other thought and both responded at once, although with a lot of difficulty.

"The second option"


	7. Part 7 ( Half an hour until dawn)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The kids make a sacrifice to face the final challenge.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is definitely my favorite chapter. I hope you like it

Varian took off his apron and broke it until he got three long ribbons. He handed one to each of the girls and he took the last one.

The three of them had taken off their jackets despite the cold it was even in that closed room. Varian had been thinking and had come to the conclusion that if everyone had to get to bleed 1.70 liters, the best option would be to have a cut on the forearm, that way they could get a lot of blood and they could stop the bleeding with ease, using some pieces of cloth they had obtained breaking one of the two T-shirts Catalina was wearing.

Although the two sisters knew they would not suffer the pain of the cut, it still hurt to know that Varian would not have that option. Both had tried to convince their friend that it was not necessary for all three to participate in that, it was enough for 2 people to sacrifice 2.5 liters of blood each, although he had reminded them of the words the host had said at the beginning of the game “if they cheated they would die”.

Keira decided to volunteer to be the first to go through what she tied her arm tightly the tape Varian had given her, to get a tourniquet to avoid bleeding too much. 

Varian tried to be quick, for the girls and for himself, since he had always hated seeing blood, although at that time he couldn't let his hemophobia control him, he had to stay strong.

Varian took one of the needles and quickly injected it into Keira's arm, who groaned a little as soon as she began to notice the fluid inside her skin, but after just a few seconds she stopped noticing that area of her arm. It was then that Varian grabbed a scalpel from above the table, although just before making the cut he looked at his friend, hoping to find himself with a pleading or even frightened look, yet he found himself with a determined face, without any fear that told him.

“Do it V, come on”

Although Varian noticed that hid hand was shaking a little, he cut his friend's arm, who groaned a little when the scalpel pierced her skin, although she did not moan for pain, but because of the image of that little knife penetrating her arm as blood fell down her wrist and went straight into the metal bucket. 

Keira remained in the same position for several minutes, until Varian observed how the bucket was already filled to the 1.70 litre mark. At that time he used one of the rags they had obtained from Catalina's shirt to cover and bandage the wound on her arm.

When Keira had already been taken care of, Catalina knew her time had come. She was afraid to go through that, although not because of the thought that a huge cut would have to be made on her arm, either because she knew that that wound that would be easily infected in a few minutes. Nor was she afraid of the needle that they would have to nail her to avoid feeling the scalpel pain ripping her skin to get her blood.

What was afraid of her was knowing that after her shift, Varian would have gone through the same thing.

Despite her thoughts, Catalina knew she had to, so, repeating the same thing her sister had done, she tied her around her arm the piece of apron Varian had given her and then sat in front of her friend.

Catalina, just like her sister didn't feel the pain of the cut, although she decided to look away when that time came, so her shift was much quieter. In less time than she expected, her wound was already bandaged. However, the three of them knew the worst time had come.

Like the sisters, Varian made a tourniquet around his arm with the piece of apron he had left, then handed Keira the unused scalpel that was left and extended his arm. Catalina know very well that she would be incapable of hurting Varian and himself knew that his instinct of survival would also make him impossible to perform that cut himself. So that left only one option, although Keira had a hard time making up her mind, she ended up accepting since she realized she was the only one who could really do it.

Varian was shaking and talking nervously, almost crying.

"Remember, you have to cut deep enough to bleed everything necessary but with caution to avoid cutting a vein or an artery."

"Don't worry, V, I promise I'll be careful and I'll try to do it as quickly as possible."

Catalina stood next to her friend and shaken her hand, telling him that he could squeeze her hand all he needed.

"Are you ready?"

"I never will be, but do it now"

Keira took a deep breath.

"All right, here I come. One, two, THREE"

Varian screamed when he felt the scalpel cutting his skin. It was even more painful than he'd imagined. He was squeezing Catalina's hand with a lot of strength while trying to keep still. Luckily, Keira was quick and within the time that was expected to be wounded, the metal bucket next to the locked door was full.

When the bucket filled with five liters of blood, the kids heard the door that had been locked open. Quickly, Keira took Varian's backpack while Catalina helped her friend get up and all 3 headed as quickly as possible to the door.

The forest was now much lighter than when they had arrived in that cabin. Varian looked into the sky and noticed that the sun was starting to rise, so he assumed it would be about 30 or 20 minutes before dawn.

When they came out the door, the three of them realized there was a ground path that was moving through the woods. They decided to follow it and when they had only moved a few meters, they saw where it was leading that road.

On the stump of a cut tree there was a glass bottle with a white liquid inside.

The antidote.

At that point, five people came up behind the trees. One of them clapped slowly and started talking.

"Congratulations my dear players, you've managed to get here, it's been a long time since no one could get through it, many can't get through the first challenges."

Although the three boys were scared, Keira got ahead of her and took the glass jar off the tocon. Then she went back quickly.

The man who spoke (the host) looked at her with a frown.

"What do you think you're doing, girl?"

Keira didn't hold back and she answered him.

"We have done it, we have completed all four challenges and survived tonight."

The host pretended to think carefully about what Keira had said. After only a few seconds he talked again.

"You're right, you've come this far and that makes you corporal loose."

Varian, Keira and Catalina were shaking, but before they had any time, the host talked to the people with him.

"Kill them, kill them all."

Varian reacted more quickly than he expected, took the two girls holding hands and, completely forgetting the pain of his arm, the three of them started running with all their forces in the opposite direction, hearing how the host's minions were following them closely.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Tomorrow you'll finally have the last chapter, I hope you like it. If the last challenge the kids have been through reminds you of something, it's because I pulled it out of one of the saw movies. In the film they had to do the same thing here, sacrifice five liters of blood between two people to escape a room that was about to explode.  
> I hope you liked it.


	8. Part 8 ( 10 minutes until dawn)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Varian, Keira and Catalina strug to save their life at the end of that macabre night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the epilogue, although it finally got shorter than I expected. I still hope you like it.

Run as fast as possible.

That was the thought Varian, Keira and Catalina had at the time. Nothing else mattered, only they had to run to save their life.

Varian could see the end of the forest through trees. He knew if they could get there they'd have advantage. However, when he had warned the girls about that, Catalina stumbled on the branch of a tree while she ran, although she thought she could stand and keep running, one of the minions grabbed her leg to keep her from escaping, right at that point Catalina knew her end had come, she could hear Varian and Keira's voices screaming her name, with a lot of concern.

Suddenly something happened that none of them expected, just when the minion tried to use his gun to kill the girl, an arrow went through his shoulder.

The three children quickly looked at the edge of the forest, where the arrow had come from, and they met with their hope. None of the three had ever been so happy before seeing the uniform of the Corona's royal guard.

Eugene looked at the kids even with the crossbow in his hand next to Stan, Pete and some other members of the royal guard.

"GUYS, GET OUT OF THERE"

None of the three kids needed to be ordered a second time. And they quickly went to get behind one of the horse carriages while Eugine and the other guards kept shooting arrows in the direction of enemies.

Keira popped out the glass jar that she was still holding in her hand and drank a small part, then handed the bottle to her sister who did the same thing and then gave Varian the bottle, who drank what was left of the antidote and then threw the bottle away from where they were in an act of anger.

After hearing the glass broke, Varian sighed very relieved, the two sisters imitated him, couldn't help but feel great.

"We've made it, girls, we're safe."

Without thinking more, the three of them embraced each other, happy that it was over, happy that they had returned their freedom.

* * *  
The return to the castle had been awkward.

The three children had been taken to the infirmary immediately, and they had been cleaned up and sutured the huge wound each had on their arm, and they had given them something to eat and some water. The royal doctor wanted all three of them to stay in a small medical examination room, so they could be kept under surveillance and so that the poison they had injected them had completely disappeared.

When the doctor finished bandaging the wounds of the three kids left them alone in the room.

"When can we go home?"

All three of them were starting to get overwhelmed, but only Catalina said it out loud. Varian was the one who answered her, trying to keep his good mood, although he also wanted to go back to his father.

"We'll be back soon, just be patient"

Patience was not exactly the virtue that the two sisters possessed the most.

Still, luckily, they didn't have to wait long. Only a few minutes later the doctor showed up through the door followed by Eugene and Rapunzel. As soon as they both saw their friends at home and safe, they couldn't hold back. Rapunzel hugged the two girls at the same time and Eugene hugged Varian, happy that Team Awesome was gathered again, then both changed hugging couples and Rapunzel hugged Varian and Eugene hugged the girls.

When that moment was over, Rapunzel told the kids they knew what happened to them and that she would explain it to them right away, although just then two more people came out the door very quickly.

The three children reacted the same way after watching those people walk through the door.

Keira and Catalina couldn't hold themselves and, crying, they ran to hug Lance, who bent down and hugged his daughters with great joy.

Varian was also unable to contain his tears when he saw his father appear at the door. He ran in his direction, and finally, that night, the two families were reunited again.

Eugene and Rapunzel watched the scene very happy, they knew that the children deserved to know the truth, deserved to know why they had suffered so much during those 12 hours.

But not at that time.

That moment was just to they enjoy it with their parents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still don't believe it, I've written a multi-chapter fanfic.  
> I'm not gonna lie, this idea has been going through my head for a while, and since the show didn't give us many moments of this friendship, I've decided to do it myself.  
> Thank you for your comments and kudos. It made me very happy to know that there were people waiting for the next chapter.  
> I have another fanfic a little longer thought, that'll have Varian as the main character and it'll be based on the movie "Love Kennedy" (comment if you want more details). I may publish it soon, but I want to have a couple of chapters already written before I start publishing. I'm also writing another one shoot like "Scars", although that would have all the characters (Rapunzel, Eugene, Lance, Varian, Keira and Catalina) as main characters (again comment if you want more information).  
> That's all for now, thank you so much for reading if you've come this far. I send you a lot of kisses and hugs.


End file.
